Virtuous Pie, Portland

Vancouver’s vegan pizzeria expands.

Vancouver, B.C. and Portland, Oregon have their share of similarities—from their rainy climates to their vibrant craft brewery scenes. Now, the Pacific Northwestern cities have one more thing in common: outposts of Virtuous Pie. The buzzy vegan pizzeria debuted in Vancouver’s Chinatown in 2016, and has opened a second, 1,900 square foot, two-level location in Portland’s Hosford-Abernethy neighbourhood.

Virtuous Pie’s executive chef Jim Vesal was confident his wholesome, plant-based pizzas, topped with nut cheeses and sustainably-grown vegetables, would be warmly welcomed by Portland’s well-established vegan community. Vesal even created new, Portland-exclusive menu offerings like a meatball and chevre pizza with faux-meatballs made with local Baerlic Brewing beer, and a Catalan pizza topped with Patatas Bravas, asparagus, and charred scallion for the occasion. Virtuous Pie’s trademark dairy-free ice creams are available at the new location, too, and can be enjoyed in a gluten-free cone or floated atop local kombucha on-tap.

The fast-casual restaurant may have West Coast healthy dining culture in its DNA (a second location just opened at UBC), but it’s soon to branch out east, with plans for a further expansion into Toronto by early 2018. The future, it seems, is virtuous.